My download won’t start, or the download page isn’t working. What now?
Chances are very good your browser or network is to blame. Even Carl Sagan could not compose an analogy sufficient to describe the number of reasons why this might be, so in lieu of that, please follow these helpful troubleshooting tips.
My download has expired. Help!
Have no fear, just follow the instructions here.
My download stopped before completing. What should I do? - or - My download is taking forever. Suggestions?
Go ahead and stop the download, then try clicking the link in the Bandcamp email receipt again (and if you’re on wireless, try plugging directly in). If the download stops again or the speed is still slow, it could be that a firewall or another internet security tool is blocking it.
Temporarily disable what you can, then try again. If that doesn’t help (or simply doesn’t apply), you might need to try your download using another internet connection -- some ISPs throttle the speed of large downloads, and the album downloads from Bandcamp (particularly the lossless formats) can be downright huge.
If you’ve been trying to download one of the larger formats like FLAC or ALAC and would like to try a more compact, yet still high-quality format like MP3, just click the format again and choose a new flavor.
Still no luck? Please click here.
When I try to unzip my album...I get an error message....I get a message saying the zip file is empty....I’m prompted to enter a password....some of the tracks are missing.
All of these errors indicate the same thing: that the downloaded file is incomplete, probably due to a hiccup in your internet connection. The solution is to try downloading the album again (if you paid for it, click the link in your Bandcamp receipt). Album downloads can be pretty large, so if you’re on wireless, you should definitely try plugging directly in. You can verify that your download is complete by right-clicking it and selecting Properties (or, on a Mac, clicking it and choosing File > Get Info). The size should match the file size listed on the Bandcamp download page.
If after re-downloading you still aren't having better luck even though the file sizes match, I ask: are you using an older version of Windows? If so, there are a few tricky things that might trip up the built-in unzipping program:
Long album & track names can cause trouble. To work around this, move the downloaded zip file to a location on your hard drive with a short path name, such as C:\temp, and extract it from there. Once the files are successfully unzipped, rename them to something simple (like “every atlas - track 1.mp3”), then move them to wherever you need to import them into your music player.
Punctuation & unusual characters can make that old unzipper of yours sneeze. Rename the zip file to something simple (e.g., “madeinheights.zip”) and try unzipping again. If that doesn’t work, you may need to use another extraction tool (like 7-Zip or Zipeg) with better support for extended characters.
If you’ve tried it all to no avail, you, like we, may be wondering, “Why even bother?” If you'd prefer to skip all this downloading, unzipping, and importing altogether, consider installing our free mobile listening app.
I downloaded FLAC, and I’m having trouble playing it back. Any advice?
Apple Music does not support FLAC, but you already knew that, right? Good. The second most common cause of problems with FLAC files is having outdated software. Before pulling your hair out, check online, get the latest version, and try again. If that doesn’t work, try another FLAC program. We personally use VLC for playback and the command line flac tools for converting to WAV.
The problem is that many older software programs can’t handle FLACs with sample sizes greater than 16 bits or sample rates higher than 44.1kHz. We encourage artists to upload the highest quality sources they can get their hands on, and more and more tracks are 24-bit/96kHz (what a great world we live in).
On unsupported software, these FLACs sound wrecked by static, or superloud, or they just won’t play at all. Some albums have a mix of 16- and 24-bit audio, which explains why you might be able to play some tracks but not others.
The bottom line is that FLAC is great and we can’t wait for the day when our 24-bit Beatles FLACs sail seamlessly into our Bandcamp Limited Edition iPods, but we’re not there yet. Software support for FLAC is still iffy, especially for the newer high-quality formats.
I downloaded FLAC (or MP3 or Ogg...), but I really wanted MP3 (or FLAC or Ogg...).
No problem: just click on the link in your receipt email, choose the format you really did want by clicking the link next to “format”, and after making your selection, click Download.
I can’t find my download on my computer. Help!
If you’re using Windows, start by looking in your My Downloads and My Music folders. If your download isn’t there, please try downloading again (if it was a paid download, you’ll find a link to retry it in the receipt we emailed you). However, when you click download this time: 1) click Save (not Open) in the dialog that appears, and 2) in the subsequent dialog, choose a location for the file, but remember to note which folder you’re saving to.
If you’re on a Mac and you weren’t asked where to save your file, look in the Downloads folder.